Knowledge Is Not King

Take a moment and do a Google search for the term leadership or leadership development programs. You’ll find pages of schools, books and programs on leadership. There is no lack of information available on the subject. There are literally millions of books and programs to choose from. Then, add to the mix, the latest and greatest, very expensive computer program that is almost guaranteed to create successful leaders overnight. Everyone is telling us what we should do.

So, what do we do?

We buy the book. Perhaps even read the book. We buy the program. We train everyone how to use the program. We give everyone the check list. Success surely follows, right?

Wrong. By the time everyone learns how to use the program and becomes proficient in its process, a new set of challenges arise and the program’s original intent is no longer relevant.

We’ve heard scenarios like this one many times over: “Our people can quote you scripture and verse of the project management program, but they wouldn’t recognize a stakeholder without a nametag. We have lots of knowledge about the “what” and “how.” So, why aren’t our projects going well?”

The answer is simple. Knowledge in and of itself is not king. It is just the first step in achieving success. To succeed, there has to be action.

The key to success is to define measurable actions that will create the success.

Almost every organization has a mission and value statement as their guiding principles. And, every person within the organization can recite the statement. However, unless these principles incorporate measurable and definable actions, they do not exist. A principle is a “rule of action or conduct.” Without action there can be no principle.

If we want to succeed we must first realize that knowledge is not king. Only when we apply -through action – does knowledge make a difference.